Programming: Schedule by Time | By Guest | By Room
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  Film Programming

We will be covering how science fiction, fantasy and horror relate to film and video media. We hope to provide a wide range of topics, from informative panels such as a repeat of last year’s “The best films you’ve never heard of” to educational programs like “Film Making 101” - presented by local film makers.

In our video room, we will also be continuing Philcon’s tradition of showing the odd, unusual, and the thought provoking. Several of the films will also feature a discussion group immediately following a presentation. Please check back in this space for further information about the films that we will be showing.

We also invite film makers to submit their films for presentation. If you have a film or short you’d like to share, feel free to contact us. Have any questions? Comments? Ideas? Please contact us:

film@philcon.org
Film Programming Coordinator - Tony Finan
Film Programming Assistant - Eve Okupniak

Fri 9:00PM in Room 413 -- Date-of-the-Art (#141)
   Does the state-of-the-art in cinema give every film a shelf-life? Which classic SF films hold up, even with the matte lines and visible wires? Panelists will discuss those classics whose reps stand taller than their “cheesy” reputations.

Fri 10:00PM in Room 413 -- Yes, I AM the Least Common Denominator! (#142)
   "The plot sucked, but the effects were really cool." Panelists will discuss Food for Thought versus Eye Candy because, after all, someone likes explosions, Spandex and gore.

Fri 11:00PM in Room 413 -- Campfire Tales (#20)
   Midnight ghost stories. Bring your pajamas, a pillow, and a good ghost story. And don’t forget the marshmallows.

Sat 11:00AM in Room 413 -- As the Wolfsbane Blooms (#140)
   Panelists will discuss the resurgence of lycanthropy as a theme in cinema (Underworld, the Ginger Snaps series, Dog Soldiers, etc.).

Sat 12:00PM in Room 413 -- Filmmaking 101 in the Digital Age (#34)
   Digital video, desktop editing and processing, and film schools offer nearly everyone the chance to make films and video. What resources are there for people who want to get into films? Local filmmakers talk about their struggles, solutions, and resources.

Sat 1:00PM in Room -- The Best Films You Never Heard Of (#27)
   Genre films from around the world. Will the New Global Economy bring’em to us in nice, subtitled packages? Here’s where you’ll hear about the great films that everyone else may or may not get to see, and why your DVD can’t show them.

Sat 3:00PM in Room 413 -- All Our Yesterdays, Forgotten? (#139)
   Classic films such as E.T., Star Wars, The Abyss, and Lord of the Rings have been revised for re-release and the home-video markets. In many cases, these revisions have met with scorn and opposition from audiences, while others have been accepted as improvements. Should Star Wars, E.T., Blade Runner, or THX-1138 have been changed or redone? Are there other SF or fantasy movies that need "modernization?"

  

Robot Stories - Winner of over 23 awards, "Robot Stories" is science fiction from the heart, four stories in which utterly human characters struggle to connect in a world of robot babies and android office workers. The stories include: "My Robot Baby," in which a couple (Tamlyn Tomita and James Saito) must care for a robot baby before adopting a human child; "The Robot Fixer," in which a mother (Wai Ching Ho) tries to connect with her dying son by completing his toy robot collection; "Machine Love," in which an office worker android (Greg Pak) learns that he, too, needs love; and "Clay," in which an old sculptor (Sab Shimono) must choose between natural death and digital immortality.
Writer/Director/Actor Greg Pak will be attending the con and will be hosting a Q & A session after the showing. www.imdb.com/title/tt0301777

  

Dagon - Stuart Gordon's adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's "Shadow over Innsmouth". Considered by some as the most faithful Lovecraft film adaptation to date. www.imdb.com/title/tt0264508/

The Assassination Bureau - Based on a Jack London novel, starring Oliver Reed and Diana Rigg. "Zeppelins. Bombs. Bordellos. Burials. You name it. We have it." www.imdb.com/title/tt0064045/

  

Ginger Snaps Unleashed - The second in the amazing trilogy of films that breathed new life into the noble werewolf. A worthy sequel and possibly better than the original. www.imdb.com/title/tt0353489/

Babylon 5: A Call To Arms - The last of the Babylon 5 movies and the prequel for the short lived series "Crusade" www.imdb.com/title/tt0146455/

  

The Convent (Friday Midnight) - A truly great B-movie. Its the typical story of stupid college kids breaking into the local haunted convent, demonic hi-jinks ensue. Not meant to be serious, just a fun entertaining send up of the genre. Cameos by Coolio and Adrienne Barbeau. www.imdb.com/title/tt0217331

EARTHLINGS - Ugly Bags of Mostly Water - On August 1, 2003 a human delegation gathered in Philadelphia to speak and celebrate a language from outer space. This film captures the life, passion and quirks of the Klingon Language Institute, an entity structured to support and facilitate the only "Constructed Language" to emerge out of popular culture. This visually unique film with a “Sci-Fi” flair examines the intricate interplay between culture and language, communication and emotion, and the razor-thin line between reality and fiction. www.earthlings-movie.com

Metal Tears - In the tradition of I, Robot and Bicentennial Man, Metal Tears explores the interaction between a man of metal and a man of flesh and blood. Metal Tears tells the story of two 30th century treasure hunters (played by Jeff Bell and Raza Usman) who find a deactivated care-giving robot named Sammy (Mark Erman) on a deserted pioneer world. Repaired and reactivated, the robot tells them about the life of his charge, Miss Emily, and asks a special favor. In its forty minute run time, the film chronicles the change to the protagonist’s impacted personality caused by his interaction with Sammy, the robot; how this “sardonic and ill-mannered” human comes to understand and then embrace the qualities of honesty and loyalty. Featured in the cast of Metal Tears are Jeff Bell, Raza Usman, Mark Erman, Kayla Bauer, Jessica LaRocca, Kate Mines, Pamela Marsh, Sam Rubin, Robert Perry, Skip Emerson and Ann Thomas. www.smashandgrabpro.com/

Roughnecks: The Starship Troopers Chronicles - Klendathu Campaign - The short lived but excellent CGI television series was a mixture of both the Robert Heinlein novel as well as the Paul Verhoeven movie adaptation of STARSHIP TROOPERS. www.imdb.com/title/tt0190198/

  

The Eldritch Influence - The Eldritch Influence looks at the world of literary outsider H.P. Lovecraft who posthumously infected a large number of artists, writers, mystics, and fanatics with his wonderfully bleak worldview. Using passionate interviews and colorful commentary the film presents a picture of Lovecraft’s life and thought through those he’s touched and inspired. Featuring extensive interviews with Lovecraft biographer S.T. Joshi, authors Ramsey Campbell, Neil Gaiman, Brian Lumley, and filmmaker Stuart Gordon. www.hermeticproductions.com

Disclaimer: All films shown at Philcon are covered under PSFS MPLC license No. 12265020 and/or shown at the express permission of the owner/artist.